Five Natural Ways to Alleviate Stress and Invite Calm into Your Life

Have you ever had one of those weekends where your zeal for productivity leaves you utterly exhausted? That's exactly where I found myself after a marathon of household chores in the beautiful weather, reminding me that sometimes, our bodies scream for a timeout. As your guide through the path of life's challenges, I, Wendy Johnson, am here to share the top five natural ways to tackle stress and anxiety, which I've personally found to be lifesavers. 

This episode isn't just about listing techniques; it's about understanding the deep-seated connection between our mental stressors and their physical manifestations. From disrupted sleep to a sudden craving for that extra chocolate chip cookie, we explore how stress sneaks into our lives and what we can do to show it the door. You'll learn how to turn exercise into a stress-busting ally, why reaching for the fruit bowl instead of the cookie jar can make all the difference, and the surprising power of simply taking deep breaths. Join me on this journey to transform the way we confront our anxieties and cultivate a life of balance and calm.

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About Wendy Johnson:

I'm a certified life coach for women who want to take their 'good' lives and make them extraordinary with personal development and life coaching tools. If you are going to find your passion, increase your self-confidence, make more money, strengthen your relationships, build your business, and do it with less struggle and frustration then you're in the right place. My programs are for busy women who want to feel better and live well in their everyday lives.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, you're listening to the Extraordinary
Every Day Podcast with WendyJohnson, episode number 42.

Speaker 2 (00:08):
Welcome to the Extraordinary Every Day Podcast,
where women come to be inspiredand motivated to become the
best version of themselves andelevate the quality of their
every day.
Now here's your host, certifiedlife coach, wendy Johnson.

Speaker 1 (00:26):
Hello, beautiful friends.
How are you?
I am doing so good, althoughI'm feeling a little bit of
stress because we are having themost gorgeous weather in the
high 70s and I spent the weekendoutside and I got a little

(00:47):
carried away with cleaningwindows and doing work, and my
body is so physically tired andI've been to the gym the last
two days and I'm dragging and Irealize today I need to just
relax and let my body heal.

(01:08):
So in this episode I want totalk to you about the top five
natural ways to manage stressand anxiety at home.
If you're experiencing stress,you're not alone.
There are people all around theworld feeling stress.
With all the uncertainty in theworld, you may be worried about

(01:30):
your health, your financialstability, family circumstances,
and stress and anxiety make itdifficult to enjoy life.
That's why I think it'simportant to discuss different
ways of managing stress.
It's important now more thanever to manage worry, stress and

(01:53):
anxiety.
There's a mind-body connectionbetween the powerful thoughts we
think when we're stressed andhow they show up as physical
symptoms in the body, physicalresponses to stress we should be
aware of.
We're having difficultysleeping, loss of appetite or

(02:15):
overeating and upset stomach,headaches, loss of libido, chest
tightness and heartpalpitations.
There's more sweating orshaking, infections, illnesses,
skin rashes or dental symptomssuch as grinding your teeth when
you're sleeping at night.

(02:35):
Also, we can experiencefeelings of being impatient and
on edge, angry, lethargic, moody, lack of focus and
concentration.
So for a better understanding,I want to talk about the
definition of worry, stress andanxiety.

(02:57):
Worry this is when you haverepeating thoughts about
something you're concerned about.
For example, did I shut thegarage when I left the house?
Did I lock the door?
And stress is a naturalresponse to a concern when we're

(03:18):
feeling troubled or threatenedfrom life.
When there's constant stress oroverload stresses, it can
overload the body's immunesystem and it settles in as
disease.
And then anxiety Anxiety is aprolonged feelings of worry and

(03:38):
stress, and anxiety causessleeplessness and exasperation
of physical symptoms in the bodythat come from anxiety.
We all harbor different areasof the body where we may pick up
disease first, whether it's asinus infection or chest

(04:00):
congestion, problems with thetummy, we all have our trigger
areas where we are holding on toour stress, and you may be able
to manage the anxious feelingsthemselves with some simple
lifestyle changes.
So these are things you can doright in your own home and

(04:24):
they're great for handlingstress and anxiety.
And the first one is exercise.
Exercise allows the body tonaturally deal with the chemical
release of adrenaline andcortisol.
When you exercise, you'restimulating dopamine, estrogen,

(04:45):
serotonin and endorphins, andthis can be a mild exercise.
If you know anything aboutpower zone training, it would be
in power zone one and two,where we're just getting the
body moving.
Taking a walk, swimming in thepool, moving our body on a yoga

(05:08):
mat these are all examples ofexercise that you can do while
your body is stressed.
And the second method is tonourish your body instead of
eating your feelings.
Maintain a healthy diet, eatingfruits, vegetables, proteins,

(05:29):
complex carbs, because oftenwhen you're stressed, you
gravitate to stimulants such ascoffee or sweets, such as
pastries, cookies or candy.
What you wanna do is regulateyour blood sugar with healthy
snacks to keep your blood sugarlevel even, and you can eat nuts

(05:52):
, seeds, fruits and vegetables.
I know when I'm feelingstressed, I eat.
I don't under eat.
I turn to things that are mycomfort foods.
Method number three for handlingstress is to just breathe.
Slowing and calming your breathwhen you're stressed will ease

(06:14):
the tension in the body and moveyour focus away from your
thoughts.
Try a four by four breath cyclewhere you're taking a deep
breath from your abdominal areaand you're bringing it up all
the way up to the throat and youcan hold it and then you slowly

(06:35):
exhale for four counts, pushingthe belly in, breathe in for a
count of four, hold the breath,if you can, for a count of four
and then exhale the breath for acount of four and you can
exhale with your mouth open andwhen you're breathing in, you're

(06:56):
breathing in through your nose.
And the fourth method forhandling stress is to stop and
smell the roses, to move awayfrom a cycle of stressful
thoughts.
Focus on your surroundings, gooutside, if you can, and take a
look at what you can see, hear,touch, taste and smell around

(07:19):
you.
Pay attention with curiosity towhat is in front of you.
Smell a rose, take in a view,look at the clouds, the sunset,
the sunrise those are allperfect times to stop and pause
in the middle of your day or tobegin your day or end your day.

(07:41):
And I was around roses thislast weekend, but all I was
doing was strenuous and physicaland I never sat down because
when I was finishing up it wasalready dark.
I just had an over abundance ofenergy to be outdoors, but now

(08:03):
I'm paying for it.
And the fifth method forhandling stress is to listen to
soothing sounds.
Play soothing music.
This can ease the stress fromyour mind and body.
Rather than listening to top 40or rock.
Change the pace up.

(08:23):
Listen to symphony or jazz orrelaxing sounds without words.
Listen to soothing spa music orsounds from the ocean.
So let's recap.
I shared with you five naturalways you can manage stress and
anxiety at home.
These aren't the cure-all, butthey will give you some relief

(08:47):
with stressful thoughts,feelings and physical ailments
you might be experiencing.
And, like anything, withpractice and persistence you'll
get better at noticing whenyou're worrying, if you have
repetitive thoughts that aren'tserving you and that are being
harbored in your body.

(09:07):
You're going to learn how tonotice when you have your
thoughts and feelings and ifyou're experiencing symptoms of
stress in the body.
I hope this helps you.
I am doing this personally formyself as well, because I need
to slow down and let my bodyrecover and remember that I

(09:32):
can't do what I did when I wasin my teens and twenties and
spend all day outside working.
My body is paying the price now.
If you know someone or have anaudience who would benefit from
learning about the five naturalways to manage stress and
anxiety, be sure to share with afriend and have them follow the

(09:56):
podcast.
I appreciate you being here.
I hope you have a beautifulrest of your week and I look
forward to being with you nextweek.
Take care, friends.
Bye-bye.

Speaker 3 (10:10):
Hey, if you enjoy listening to this podcast, you
have to come check out More.
You, my community oflike-minded women.
We show up to create thehighest version of ourselves and
elevate the quality of oureveryday.
Along the way, head over toontracklifecoachingcom forward,

(10:30):
slash, join.
That's O-N-T-R-A-Clifecoachingcom forward, slash,
join.
I'd love to see you in there.
And if you haven't grabbed yourcopy of the Mindset Makeover,
head over toontracklifecoachingcom forward
slash makeover and get a copythat teaches and inspires you to

(10:53):
show up as your mostextraordinary self.